Well, I thought I should write an update so you can hear the full story of our Ethiopian adventure. First of all, let me say that Ryan and I cannot thank you enough for your prayers, support and encouragement. I’ve been overwhelmed by everyone’s concern. We can definitely feel your prayers! God has been incredibly good. I’m feeling better each day and am able to move around and walk on my own some. The pain is very tolerable with the pain medication. Ryan and I are very thankful to the Lord for His protection…as this could have been so much worse. Overall, I am doing really well and will back to normal in just a few short months. (By the way, if any of you don’t know, I recently had a horse accident)
So, here is the story as I remember it…
Ryan and I attended a conference here in Addis Ababa for our jobs, which took place May 6-8. After the conference we had the weekend free before we were scheduled to fly back to Monrovia. We wanted to do something fun and see the Ethiopian country side before we left, and when we saw a flier for a horseback riding excursion it sounded perfect. On Saturday we had a taxi driver take us about 17 kilometers outside the city, through the gorgeous Ethiopian countryside to the stables for our ride, where we arrived about 1:30pm. The horse back riding place is run by a French man who is married to an Ethiopian. His mother-in-law is the one who met us at the stables and served us coffee before our ride.
After coffee Ryan and I met our guide who would be taking us on the ride. He was a very kind Ethiopian man, but I couldn’t pronounce his name well enough to spell it on here. He gave us our horse riding helmets and introduced us to our horses. My horse was named “Taso” which means “can go too fast.” Hmmm…maybe that was my first clue. Ryan’s horse was something like “Begar” which means “he knows something.” Maybe that was our second clue! :) We led our horses down a dirt road to a nearby open field where we mounted and set off for our 2 hour ride.
The ride was absolutely breathtaking. We rode through the surrounding plateaus and through a nearby forest, where we even saw some monkeys. Then we went through the farmland, where we saw many farmers leading their donkeys and herding their cows. I almost felt like it was from a movie. At several points we had our horses trot, which I had never done before. My horse didn’t really like to walk…but it enjoyed going faster! Inwardly I thought how I was making my home state proud, riding my horse like a true Texan. Ha! Now I feel ridiculous even admitting that. :-P
About 3pm, an hour into our ride, the horses were walking down a dirt road where there were small huts and houses along the sides. Children would come out to wave to us or just to stare. I never actually saw the woman who was chasing two goats out from her fence in front of her house, but that’s what Ryan told me spooked the horses. The goats were coming directly towards the horses from the right side (almost between Ryan’s horse and my horse-the guide was far enough in front where his horse didn’t scare). I sort of remember seeing Ryan’s horse dart off towards the left of the road into an open field…about the same time that my horse jumped. I don’t remember exactly what my horse did, but I’m almost positive it reared up on its hind legs, because before I even knew what was happening I was flying off the back.
I landed on one side of my rear end, almost in a sitting position…a bit hunched forward... which is what caused the compression fractures. The first few seconds after I landed I think I was in a bit of shock. The wind was knocked out of me and there was stabbing pain in my back. I remember thinking/praying “Oh God help me…what is happening….please let me be able to move my legs”. I sat there for a few seconds and then when my breath came back I tried to lie down on the ground. The pain was bad, but all I could think about was making sure I could move my legs…which praise God I could! By this time Ryan had made it over to me. His horse had taken off running in a field, and he almost fell off too…but thankfully he was able to hold on. Once I laid down I was crying, partly because of the pain but also because I was scared.
The guide kept trying to get me to stand up and move off the road. I tried to let them help me up, but the pain got much worse and I knew I needed to just lay there. I was able to turn over into a position on my side which lessened the pain. Ryan told our guide that I needed to get to the hospital, so the guide started making some calls. Ryan swatted the flies off of me and just talked to me while I calmed down. I don’t know if I have ever been more thankful for what a wonderful husband I have. He was able to remain completely calm in the situation and take care of everything. He also made me realize that everything was going to be fine, which enabled me to calm down. The guide told us that they were sending a car to get me, but it would take a while to get there. His English wasn’t too great which made it harder to communicate. Ryan also called one of our contacts from the SP Office here in Addis…Darren, the Deputy Country Director. Darren had been helping us throughout the week to find our way around Addis. As soon as Ryan talked to him Darren started driving towards the stables where we had started our ride.
By this time I had attracted a small crowd, which continued to grow and grow. Someone brought out a tarp for me to lie on, and a blanket for my head. Later on someone also brought an umbrella to shade the sun. I wasn’t able to look up to see the expressions on the people’s faces very much, but when I did I saw they were just staring at me, almost with blank expressions. Every now and then someone would say something that would make them all laugh. I kept asking Ryan what they were laughing at ha. They also tried to get me to move into the shade several times, because they thought I would be more comfortable there, but Ryan kept explaining that I couldn’t move.
After about an hour (I think) the guide told us that the car they had sent couldn’t make it there. It got to a mountain which it couldn’t go over…as the guide said “it got tired.” So, we called Darren again and he was still on his way over. I ended up lying in the road for about 2 ½ hours, but the time passed sort of quickly. At one point I told Ryan he should take some pictures, so he did…which are the ones you see here. I think this must have been the most exciting thing to happen in that village ever. The people were just mesmerized.
So after about 2 ½ hours Darren was able to make it to where we were in his 4 wheel drive Land Cruiser. The mother-in-law that I mentioned earlier rode out with him. They put me in the back seat of the car, and the mother-in-law put my head in her lap and really treated me like I was her child! She was very sweet and just kept saying how sorry she was. Of course, this was nobody’s fault so we made sure that everyone there knew that. The owner of the place wasn’t there during the ordeal, but we talked to him on the phone several times during everything, and he was extremely helpful and concerned. He even came to visit me at the hotel this week which was so nice.
Once we made it back to the stables where we started, the mother-in-law got out and got me a couple pillows to take for the ride to the hospital. It took about an hour to get to the Korean Christian hospital, which is the best in Addis. By this point the pain was tolerable when I was lying down, and I was able to talk with Darren and Ryan and find humor in the whole situation. We arrived at the emergency room at about 6:30 and they brought me in on a stretcher. After they confirmed that I had not lost any feeling in my legs, the doctor decided to do an x-ray to see if any damage was done to the bone. The doctor was actually a neurosurgeon which was amazing. He read the x-ray and said that I had a slight compression fracture of the L1 vertebrae, and they would do an MRI in the morning to see the extent of the damage, and to make sure my spinal cord was not affected.
They wanted me to sleep on the stretcher in the emergency over night, but thankfully Ryan had the idea to ask for a room. The only room they had left was the VIP room, but it was only $100 for the night so we immediately said yes. The room was really big and had a pretty comfortable couch for Ryan to sleep on. By this time it was about 8:30pm. Darren took Ryan to the hotel to get some things for us, and I just stared at the ceiling and waited. I was completely covered in dirt from head to toe, so I was glad we got a room so Ryan could help me clean up. After Ryan got back we just waited for the doctor to come to give us more information on what was next, but he didn’t show up until 12:30am. He just told me to stay lying down, but Ryan could help me if I needed to get up to use the bathroom. At 1am the nurses gave me a shot to help me sleep. Whatever was in that shot was wonderful. I immediately felt incredibly relaxed, and even though I was in and out of sleep I felt very happy ha! I kept telling Ryan that I felt so good and that I wondered if people got addicted to this stuff. It wore off about 4am when I got another one and slept until about 8.
We were scheduled to leave for the MRI at 9am but it ended up being 11. They put me in an ambulance, which was sort of a minivan…and Ryan rode with me to the Imaging Center. The sirens were going and everything. We got the center, which was run by Chinese, and they quickly got me in for the MRI. When I came out the Chinese woman radiologist said “I think it’s small problem…you just sleep like this for 3 months.” At that point I thought oh great…that does not sound fun. She told me she saw 2 compression fractures, but my spinal cord was fine, praise God! We got the MRI and headed back to the hospital about 1pm.
We returned to the room and waited for another neurosurgeon to come read the MRI. However, apparently there was some type of miscommunication and the doctor didn’t know we wanted him. But, no one had even told us what to do, so we figured we should just wait. Finally, a couple doctors showed up about 6pm. One doctor confirmed the 2 fractures and also saw a herniated disk, but said with rest I would be fine a few months. They said a back brace would help, but there was nowhere in the country to get a back brace. Finally I was discharged about 8:30 and left the hospital with a supply of pain killers.
Since Sunday night we have been staying at the same hotel we were originally at, and the people here have been so kind to us! They always ask about me and want to help. Two days ago the owner told Ryan that she wanted to make me a special soup to help heal my bones. That night about 10:30 there was a faint knock on the door, and a woman asked me to come downstairs for the soup. I waited in the dining room for a while, but it wasn’t ready and I was fading fast, so I asked them to bring it up to the room. They ended up bringing a white soup they called “oats” which was some plain oatmeal. :) We thought that was pretty funny.
So, you might be wondering about how I was able to go downstairs to get the soup when I am supposed to be laying on my back. I actually have been able to move around and walk on my own some since Sunday. Each day I try to do a little more, because the doctors have said that I can’t make the fractures any worse. They are “stable” so the only thing that could cause them to become unstable would be doing something very stupid (like jumping up and down, running, etc). Otherwise, I am supposed to be taking things very easy but I don’t have to lie down all the time. It actually feels better for me not to lie directly on my back. That is why I am able to write so much on the computer, because I can lean back without sitting straight up.
The pain medication has been helping a great deal. I’ve been able to sleep at night and the pain is very tolerable throughout the day. There are certain positions that make the pain a lot worse (such as bending over) but obviously I am avoiding those. :) I’m also not allowed to lift anything heavy. Ryan and I have taken several walks to nearby food places, which I’ve done pretty well at. I can only take so much in a day though before I get tired and the pain gets worse. But, again, things are so much better than I could have even asked for. God is good. We will fly back to Monrovia on Monday, one week later than was originally planned, according the doctor’s orders. We’re also going to ride business class, as the doctors said sitting up for more than 4 hours will cause more pain.
The plan from here is to just take things one day at a time. Amazingly, my mom had already planned to make a trip out to Liberia in June to visit me, and she was able to move her trip up without any charge from the airlines! She will be arriving in Monrovia next Friday and will stay almost 3 weeks. I’m so glad she will be here to help out, especially as Ryan may need to take trips upcountry and won’t have to worry about leaving me alone. Of course I’m also just happy to see her! She is also bringing me a back brace that is being made right now, so that worked out perfectly. The brace should help with the pain during the healing process, so hopefully I will be able to work without taking much medication.
Thankfully I have been able to work some this week from the hotel and keep in touch with people at the Monrovia office. I think that may be the biggest challenge for me from here on out is not worrying too much about my job. I’m sure I am going to feel behind, but I know I need to just trust God and leave it in his hands. If I’ve learned anything from this so far, it is that life can change in an instant, and some things in life just don’t matter that much in the big picture. This is something that I know and that we hear often, but when you’re faced with a moment that could change your life it seems so much clearer in that instant. However, because my life really isn’t going to change that much and this is not nearly as bad as it could have been, it may be easy to forget this. But I pray that God doesn’t let me forget, and that He will use this to help me put things back into perspective.
Ryan is out right now working on getting our airline tickets finalized. I think this week has completely exhausted him as he has had to take care of every single detail, but he is doing an amazing job. I keep thinking of the verses in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 “Two are better than one…If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” How true is that right now? I’m also so thankful for my mom who will be here soon…and for the people here in Ethiopia who have helped in any way they can.
Well, this is ridiculously long. Sorry! If you skip over a lot (I would) I understand! I just wanted to let everyone who has been praying for me know the details and how things are going. Thank you again for your outpouring of love. I love each of you and pray God will bless you for the kindness you have shown me (and Ryan and my family). Thank you!
So, here is the story as I remember it…
Ryan and I attended a conference here in Addis Ababa for our jobs, which took place May 6-8. After the conference we had the weekend free before we were scheduled to fly back to Monrovia. We wanted to do something fun and see the Ethiopian country side before we left, and when we saw a flier for a horseback riding excursion it sounded perfect. On Saturday we had a taxi driver take us about 17 kilometers outside the city, through the gorgeous Ethiopian countryside to the stables for our ride, where we arrived about 1:30pm. The horse back riding place is run by a French man who is married to an Ethiopian. His mother-in-law is the one who met us at the stables and served us coffee before our ride.
After coffee Ryan and I met our guide who would be taking us on the ride. He was a very kind Ethiopian man, but I couldn’t pronounce his name well enough to spell it on here. He gave us our horse riding helmets and introduced us to our horses. My horse was named “Taso” which means “can go too fast.” Hmmm…maybe that was my first clue. Ryan’s horse was something like “Begar” which means “he knows something.” Maybe that was our second clue! :) We led our horses down a dirt road to a nearby open field where we mounted and set off for our 2 hour ride.
The ride was absolutely breathtaking. We rode through the surrounding plateaus and through a nearby forest, where we even saw some monkeys. Then we went through the farmland, where we saw many farmers leading their donkeys and herding their cows. I almost felt like it was from a movie. At several points we had our horses trot, which I had never done before. My horse didn’t really like to walk…but it enjoyed going faster! Inwardly I thought how I was making my home state proud, riding my horse like a true Texan. Ha! Now I feel ridiculous even admitting that. :-P
About 3pm, an hour into our ride, the horses were walking down a dirt road where there were small huts and houses along the sides. Children would come out to wave to us or just to stare. I never actually saw the woman who was chasing two goats out from her fence in front of her house, but that’s what Ryan told me spooked the horses. The goats were coming directly towards the horses from the right side (almost between Ryan’s horse and my horse-the guide was far enough in front where his horse didn’t scare). I sort of remember seeing Ryan’s horse dart off towards the left of the road into an open field…about the same time that my horse jumped. I don’t remember exactly what my horse did, but I’m almost positive it reared up on its hind legs, because before I even knew what was happening I was flying off the back.
I landed on one side of my rear end, almost in a sitting position…a bit hunched forward... which is what caused the compression fractures. The first few seconds after I landed I think I was in a bit of shock. The wind was knocked out of me and there was stabbing pain in my back. I remember thinking/praying “Oh God help me…what is happening….please let me be able to move my legs”. I sat there for a few seconds and then when my breath came back I tried to lie down on the ground. The pain was bad, but all I could think about was making sure I could move my legs…which praise God I could! By this time Ryan had made it over to me. His horse had taken off running in a field, and he almost fell off too…but thankfully he was able to hold on. Once I laid down I was crying, partly because of the pain but also because I was scared.
The guide kept trying to get me to stand up and move off the road. I tried to let them help me up, but the pain got much worse and I knew I needed to just lay there. I was able to turn over into a position on my side which lessened the pain. Ryan told our guide that I needed to get to the hospital, so the guide started making some calls. Ryan swatted the flies off of me and just talked to me while I calmed down. I don’t know if I have ever been more thankful for what a wonderful husband I have. He was able to remain completely calm in the situation and take care of everything. He also made me realize that everything was going to be fine, which enabled me to calm down. The guide told us that they were sending a car to get me, but it would take a while to get there. His English wasn’t too great which made it harder to communicate. Ryan also called one of our contacts from the SP Office here in Addis…Darren, the Deputy Country Director. Darren had been helping us throughout the week to find our way around Addis. As soon as Ryan talked to him Darren started driving towards the stables where we had started our ride.
By this time I had attracted a small crowd, which continued to grow and grow. Someone brought out a tarp for me to lie on, and a blanket for my head. Later on someone also brought an umbrella to shade the sun. I wasn’t able to look up to see the expressions on the people’s faces very much, but when I did I saw they were just staring at me, almost with blank expressions. Every now and then someone would say something that would make them all laugh. I kept asking Ryan what they were laughing at ha. They also tried to get me to move into the shade several times, because they thought I would be more comfortable there, but Ryan kept explaining that I couldn’t move.
After about an hour (I think) the guide told us that the car they had sent couldn’t make it there. It got to a mountain which it couldn’t go over…as the guide said “it got tired.” So, we called Darren again and he was still on his way over. I ended up lying in the road for about 2 ½ hours, but the time passed sort of quickly. At one point I told Ryan he should take some pictures, so he did…which are the ones you see here. I think this must have been the most exciting thing to happen in that village ever. The people were just mesmerized.
So after about 2 ½ hours Darren was able to make it to where we were in his 4 wheel drive Land Cruiser. The mother-in-law that I mentioned earlier rode out with him. They put me in the back seat of the car, and the mother-in-law put my head in her lap and really treated me like I was her child! She was very sweet and just kept saying how sorry she was. Of course, this was nobody’s fault so we made sure that everyone there knew that. The owner of the place wasn’t there during the ordeal, but we talked to him on the phone several times during everything, and he was extremely helpful and concerned. He even came to visit me at the hotel this week which was so nice.
Once we made it back to the stables where we started, the mother-in-law got out and got me a couple pillows to take for the ride to the hospital. It took about an hour to get to the Korean Christian hospital, which is the best in Addis. By this point the pain was tolerable when I was lying down, and I was able to talk with Darren and Ryan and find humor in the whole situation. We arrived at the emergency room at about 6:30 and they brought me in on a stretcher. After they confirmed that I had not lost any feeling in my legs, the doctor decided to do an x-ray to see if any damage was done to the bone. The doctor was actually a neurosurgeon which was amazing. He read the x-ray and said that I had a slight compression fracture of the L1 vertebrae, and they would do an MRI in the morning to see the extent of the damage, and to make sure my spinal cord was not affected.
They wanted me to sleep on the stretcher in the emergency over night, but thankfully Ryan had the idea to ask for a room. The only room they had left was the VIP room, but it was only $100 for the night so we immediately said yes. The room was really big and had a pretty comfortable couch for Ryan to sleep on. By this time it was about 8:30pm. Darren took Ryan to the hotel to get some things for us, and I just stared at the ceiling and waited. I was completely covered in dirt from head to toe, so I was glad we got a room so Ryan could help me clean up. After Ryan got back we just waited for the doctor to come to give us more information on what was next, but he didn’t show up until 12:30am. He just told me to stay lying down, but Ryan could help me if I needed to get up to use the bathroom. At 1am the nurses gave me a shot to help me sleep. Whatever was in that shot was wonderful. I immediately felt incredibly relaxed, and even though I was in and out of sleep I felt very happy ha! I kept telling Ryan that I felt so good and that I wondered if people got addicted to this stuff. It wore off about 4am when I got another one and slept until about 8.
We were scheduled to leave for the MRI at 9am but it ended up being 11. They put me in an ambulance, which was sort of a minivan…and Ryan rode with me to the Imaging Center. The sirens were going and everything. We got the center, which was run by Chinese, and they quickly got me in for the MRI. When I came out the Chinese woman radiologist said “I think it’s small problem…you just sleep like this for 3 months.” At that point I thought oh great…that does not sound fun. She told me she saw 2 compression fractures, but my spinal cord was fine, praise God! We got the MRI and headed back to the hospital about 1pm.
We returned to the room and waited for another neurosurgeon to come read the MRI. However, apparently there was some type of miscommunication and the doctor didn’t know we wanted him. But, no one had even told us what to do, so we figured we should just wait. Finally, a couple doctors showed up about 6pm. One doctor confirmed the 2 fractures and also saw a herniated disk, but said with rest I would be fine a few months. They said a back brace would help, but there was nowhere in the country to get a back brace. Finally I was discharged about 8:30 and left the hospital with a supply of pain killers.
Since Sunday night we have been staying at the same hotel we were originally at, and the people here have been so kind to us! They always ask about me and want to help. Two days ago the owner told Ryan that she wanted to make me a special soup to help heal my bones. That night about 10:30 there was a faint knock on the door, and a woman asked me to come downstairs for the soup. I waited in the dining room for a while, but it wasn’t ready and I was fading fast, so I asked them to bring it up to the room. They ended up bringing a white soup they called “oats” which was some plain oatmeal. :) We thought that was pretty funny.
So, you might be wondering about how I was able to go downstairs to get the soup when I am supposed to be laying on my back. I actually have been able to move around and walk on my own some since Sunday. Each day I try to do a little more, because the doctors have said that I can’t make the fractures any worse. They are “stable” so the only thing that could cause them to become unstable would be doing something very stupid (like jumping up and down, running, etc). Otherwise, I am supposed to be taking things very easy but I don’t have to lie down all the time. It actually feels better for me not to lie directly on my back. That is why I am able to write so much on the computer, because I can lean back without sitting straight up.
The pain medication has been helping a great deal. I’ve been able to sleep at night and the pain is very tolerable throughout the day. There are certain positions that make the pain a lot worse (such as bending over) but obviously I am avoiding those. :) I’m also not allowed to lift anything heavy. Ryan and I have taken several walks to nearby food places, which I’ve done pretty well at. I can only take so much in a day though before I get tired and the pain gets worse. But, again, things are so much better than I could have even asked for. God is good. We will fly back to Monrovia on Monday, one week later than was originally planned, according the doctor’s orders. We’re also going to ride business class, as the doctors said sitting up for more than 4 hours will cause more pain.
The plan from here is to just take things one day at a time. Amazingly, my mom had already planned to make a trip out to Liberia in June to visit me, and she was able to move her trip up without any charge from the airlines! She will be arriving in Monrovia next Friday and will stay almost 3 weeks. I’m so glad she will be here to help out, especially as Ryan may need to take trips upcountry and won’t have to worry about leaving me alone. Of course I’m also just happy to see her! She is also bringing me a back brace that is being made right now, so that worked out perfectly. The brace should help with the pain during the healing process, so hopefully I will be able to work without taking much medication.
Thankfully I have been able to work some this week from the hotel and keep in touch with people at the Monrovia office. I think that may be the biggest challenge for me from here on out is not worrying too much about my job. I’m sure I am going to feel behind, but I know I need to just trust God and leave it in his hands. If I’ve learned anything from this so far, it is that life can change in an instant, and some things in life just don’t matter that much in the big picture. This is something that I know and that we hear often, but when you’re faced with a moment that could change your life it seems so much clearer in that instant. However, because my life really isn’t going to change that much and this is not nearly as bad as it could have been, it may be easy to forget this. But I pray that God doesn’t let me forget, and that He will use this to help me put things back into perspective.
Ryan is out right now working on getting our airline tickets finalized. I think this week has completely exhausted him as he has had to take care of every single detail, but he is doing an amazing job. I keep thinking of the verses in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 “Two are better than one…If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” How true is that right now? I’m also so thankful for my mom who will be here soon…and for the people here in Ethiopia who have helped in any way they can.
Well, this is ridiculously long. Sorry! If you skip over a lot (I would) I understand! I just wanted to let everyone who has been praying for me know the details and how things are going. Thank you again for your outpouring of love. I love each of you and pray God will bless you for the kindness you have shown me (and Ryan and my family). Thank you!
We are really enjoying the place we’re living at. Some people have asked if we have electricity, hot water, etc. We do have power (by generator and battery) most of the time, and we do have hot water for showers. These two things in themselves are a luxury for most of Liberia! So we are very grateful. We attend the church in our compound, which makes it nice on Sundays. : ) It’s a fairly large church with many Liberians as well as expats, and I enjoy the worship there. Liberians are very animated when they sing! This is our view above the church...
Well, this blog has become extremely long. Sorry! I hope this gives you a better idea of what’s going on with us. Please continue to pray for us and that we will serve with God’s strength and not our own. Thank you! We miss you!
